"Argh!" A young man yelled out.

 

Pain can be felt all over his body but the more painful part was his abdomen. Another man had pulled out a thorn drill from it forcefully. Dark red liquid instantly flows out from it.

 

However, the blood stops with ice power that freezes the part of the injured abdomen. The man breathes and pants hard. His use of ice power was the last energy he could manifest.

 

"Rest, Ceilius. You've done well holding on." The other man was Dark Kage who also looked exhausted.

 

His body was covered in a lot of scratches and beside his left side were deep wounds that were still bleeding out. He had sprayed the place with antibacterial substances and some paste of unknown medicine to slow down the bleeding. His eyeglasses were also nowhere to be seen.

 

Besides the two was Dark Amilia. She was unconscious with a deep scratch as well but no serious injuries.

 

"No way! You want Revioryx to find us?! We must leave here!" Dark Ceilius disagreed while gritting his teeth.

 

Dark Kage sighed. "Yes, but with your condition, do you think I can carry you two to escape with two hands? I only have two legs!"

 

Dark Ceilius glared at him. "Then, create a car or something! This kingdom is your playground with your products!"

 

Dark Kage returned the glare. "I would have built it if it's not for the anti-wave current happening around us right now. Nothing can make anything I invented work."

 

"Then, do something else that works!"

 

Both of them stare intensely at each other.

 

"Urgh… What the hell are the noises? Ow!" Dark Amilia slowly regains her consciousness.

 

She grunts after feeling pain all over her body. She finally remembered everything that happened to them. A day ago, Dark Kage was unsuccessful in communicating with the prince. He could only go to the Eridan Kingdom to find the prince face to face. Accompanying him were Dark Ceilius and her. 

 

They don't feel good if they let him go alone. Using teleportation devices, they arrive in a village near the royal city. Surprisingly, the village was empty. No one or any living thing excluding the plants was found there. It was deserted. 

 

They have a bad feeling and decide to move out of the village and teleport themselves straight to the royal city. But, before they could do it, a dark monster appeared with thorn hands. It was a little different from the one that Ledeigh and Pisces met before. This monster's many hands have thorns like trees.

 

Dark Ceilius used his ice power to freeze it but the monster's body oozed the same black liquid that melted it in a few seconds. Dark Amilia then used her earth power to turn the soil below the monster into sand and bury it inside. 

 

The monster got away by pushing its body out using its thorns. The thorns then attack the trio so fast that they couldn't avoid being injured by them. Dark Kage wants to use his gadgets like an explosion to destroy them but he was shocked when he threw one of them. It doesn't work.

 

The surprise of his malfunctioning gadget caused the monster to be able to damage his left body. Seeing Dark Kage was injured, the other two accidentally lose their focus and get the same attack. The fight ended when Dark Amilia used her last energy to summon a group of earth puppets to hold off the monster while they escaped.

 

Dark Kage had tried to teleport them back to Syarantonia but his device was malfunctioning too. He could only run and bring his two injured friends somewhere far from the monster. He was glad that he brought some liquid to erase their scent.

 

Currently, they were hiding in a small cave. Dark Kage, who had checked the cave had no danger of living things, finally lowered down his two friends. He tried his best to stop their bleeding wounds.

 

Now, she looks at them. "How are we going to leave here? We have no transportation or anything that we can communicate with the others."

 

Dark Kage and Dark Ceilius went silent. They were thinking of a way to leave there.

 

“I can make a car but we need petroleum which is in the south. And I have no idea where the south is. There is thick fog outside now.” 

 

Dark Kage thinks they were in deep trouble. He shouldn’t have thought to go here or bring his friends along. Moreover, their other allies from the Bright Star, who knows if they were trapped here like them. 

 

“The others might be luckier than us.” Dark Amilia suddenly said.

 

“What do you mean?” Dark Ceilius asked. 

 

He had closed his eyes and only used his ears to listen.

 

“They have a teleporter in their group so it will be easier for them to leave. As for us…” She didn’t continue anymore and let them continue it on their own.

 

Both men understood it. They were too confident with Dark Kage teleportation device and forgot to be careful if there would be a problem with it. Now, they can only blame themselves.

 

“We need to move when the fog disappears but I’m not sure what causes the fog. It could be our enemy's ability too.” Dark Kage sighs.

 

He walked towards the cave entrance and looked outside. He can’t see anything at all. He has no feelings or emotions but his thoughts can still think his friends might be fearing what'll happen to them from now on. He must ensure Dark Ceilius' injuries do not become more severe until they return or find the others with teleportation abilities.

 

“I’ll watch for us. You guys go rest and sleep. We need to save our energy to leave here.” He told them.

 

Dark Amilia, who still can move, walks to his side. “You are injured too. I’ll take the watch for now. After all, I have slept for a while and couldn’t sleep yet.”

 

Dark Kage nodded. He truly does want to rest so he can think a lot later. He went back into the cave and sat somewhere he could see both of them. Then, he closed his eyes. As for Dark Ceilius, he slowly falls into a deep sleep after being given a green light by them. After all, his injuries were heavier than theirs.

 

A few hours later, Dark Kage opens his eyes and changes shifts with Dark Amilia. The fog outside was still thick and getting darker.

 

“It will be night soon. I must make a sound trap.”

 

The night was always a dangerous time for their prey before but now they have become the prey of their enemies. He went out and quickly built something around the cave.

 

"Mmph?!" 

 

He was startled when something slippery suddenly wrapped around his legs and wanted to pull him away into the fog. He pulls out his diamond knife from his waist and slices it off before jumping away.

 

“It’s here!” He thought and went into a fighting stance.

 

He must finish it off on his own and cannot let the monster get near his friends in the cave. A shadow appeared on his right and he immediately ran to it without hesitating whether it would be dangerous or not. He doesn't have fear or feel pain so it was easy for him to fight the monster.

 

Dark Amilia slowly opens her eyes and yawns. She looked around the cave for a moment before she went to check on Dark Ceilius. She could hear his light breathing.

 

“Ceilius? Hey, wake up.” She patted his cheeks.

 

“Erm… Let me sleep more…” He mumbled in his sleep and slowly turned to his side.

 

He woke up abruptly while grunting in pain when he accidentally moved his injured abdomen.

 

“God, I haven’t felt this much pain in years!” He complains.

 

Dark Amilia rolled her eyes at him. “Wake up.”

 

She then walked toward the cave entrance. She stopped walking when she saw darkness around her. She realised the day had turned to night again.

 

“Kage?” She called but no one answered her.

 

She can’t even hear anything. Usually, there would be the sound of crickets but…

 

"Where is he?” Dark Ceilius asked while staring out the cave.

 

He had one hand cover his injured abdomen. He shouldn’t move yet but he can’t feel Dark Kage's presence there. So, he quickly walks to Dark Amilia’s side.

 

Dark Amilia used her earth power to feel around their surroundings. Her head snapped to her right. 

 

“I can feel some movement over there. Let’s go!” She quickly ran in that direction.

 

Dark Ceilius follows after her while ignoring the pain. When they arrive, they look dumbfounded.

 

“Huh? Why are you guys here? Ceilius, why the hell you are moving around and running?! Do you want your intestines to fall out?!” Dark Kage scowled at them.

 

“You, you… What the shit are you doing?! That’s so disgusting!” Dark Ceilius feels like puking.

 

Even Dark Amilia was too stunned to say anything. In front of them, the monster that attacked Dark Kage and was defeated by the latter had its body parts dismantled on the ground. And Dark Kage's whole body was covered in its slimy liquid that was probably the monster's blood. Moreover, he was holding an eye as big as his hand.

 

“What? This monster should be studied by us. Who knows if we could find its weakness from the inside. I think I need to kill more. One is not enough for my data on them.”

 

Dark Kage told them with a voice that lowered at the end like he was mumbling. But still can be heard by his friends. Both of them shuddered at his plan.

 

“Let’s get back to the cave… I don’t even want to be here for more than a second.” Dark Ceilius whispered to Dark Amilia who nodded in agreement.

 

So, they step back slowly before they run away to the cave, leaving the startled Dark Kage who sees their actions.

 

“Huh? What’s up with them…? Oh well, back to study my specimen. Shit, my whole body is so slimy.” 

 

He no longer focused on his friends and cut more flesh off the monster. He didn’t know that another monster had appeared from above him. It was invisible just now and slowly approaching him with its thorn hands. It was the same monster that attacked them before.

 

Dark Ceilius and Dark Amilia were startled when a loud boom sounded from the direction they left Dark Kage. Both instantly ran back.

 

“Kage!” They yelled when they arrived but they didn't see him anywhere.

 

Only the monster he defeated remains.

 

"Kage!" They called him while searching around.

 

Dark Amilia uses her earth powers to search for him. She found the trace of movement toward somewhere else and it moved so fast that she couldn’t prevent it from stopping. 

 

“He was taken and went that way!” She told Dark Ceilius and once again, they ran.

 

They must get to Dark Kage fast. Who knows if the monster would kill him before they could save him. They arrive in a city not long after. Many skyscraper buildings were in the city.

 

"The royal city…” Dark Amilia whispered.

 

It seems they have arrived in the royal city they want to go to before. But they can’t see anyone around. Only damaged and crashed buildings can be found there.

 

“Do you feel him?" Dark Ceilius frowned and asked her.

 

Dark Amilia nodded and she pointed at one of the city skyscrapers that was still okay and taller than the others. Dark Ceilius signals for them to move quickly inside. They don't know what happened to Dark Kage anymore.

 

"Do you think Revioryx is here…?" Dark Amilia asked him while they moved carefully inside the building.

 

They have used the stairs to move up the floor one by one. While at that, they search for Dark Kage.

 

"I don't kn-...?! Amilia, watch out!" 

 

Dark Ceilius pushed Dark Amilia's body behind a wall when a laser beam headed towards them and blew up the place they stood just now.

 

"It seems it found us.” 

 

Dark Ceilius glares at the monster that slowly appears from its invisibility.